The present disclosure relates to laminated sheets and cards that are manufactured from these sheets. Laminated sheets and cards are used in a variety of applications, such as financial transaction cards (e.g., credit or debit cards, phone cards, gift cards, loyalty cards, etc.), security cards (e.g., identification cards), and the like. Some known sheets and cards may be formed from multiple layers of plastic based substrates, holographic, metallized, printed or clear films or foils, adhesives and coatings, among other layers. The cards also may include printing, graphics, and/or other features.
The cards and the sheets from which the cards are formed can include a metallized layer to form various decorative, security, or other functional features of the cards. Such a layer can be used to provide a holographic effect or feature, or another decorative feature, which can be used to distinguish between legitimate and counterfeit cards, or the like.
Electrostatic energy can pass through these metallized layers of the cards. For example, through routine or daily use of a financial transaction card by a user, electrostatic energy can pass through a metallized layer in the card that extends along the length of the card, from one end to an opposite end along the card. When the card is inserted into an electronic machine or device (e.g., a point of sale terminal), one or more portions of the metallized layer may contact the machine or device and conduct the electrostatic energy into the machine or device. Conducting this energy can be referred to as electrostatic discharge, or ESD. The ESD can damage the machine or device and prevent the machine or device from being used.